


In ‘Vera’ Veritas

by lokiskliego



Category: The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: A lot of Flashbacks, Alpha Allison, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Angst and Humor, Beta Ben and Beta Luther, Hurt/Comfort, Idiots in Love, Kidfic, Klaus has serious issues and no parental skills, M/M, Mpreg, Okay Klaus is going on a emotional ride let’s join him, Omega Klaus, Omega Vanya, Original Baby Character - Freeform, Please someone give Ben and Vanya a medal, Pseudo-Incest, Season 2 But Not Canon-Compliant, Slow Burn, Super supportive family (to the best of their knowledge), Tags May Change, Vanya is such a good sister, Vanya remembers, alpha diego, klaus-centric, mentioned klaus/dave, partially, they are all a disaster, very minor diego/lila
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-13
Updated: 2020-10-17
Packaged: 2021-03-06 21:42:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,463
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26225860
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lokiskliego/pseuds/lokiskliego
Summary: “God, Klaus. You are drowning in hormones right now. If that doesn’t scream pregnant-” Ben was shushed quiet by Klaus’ “Good-Bye’’ tattooed hand before he could say more.“Hush, don’t say it! It’s a bad omen. From now on, we are not gonna mention it.” He sniffed. “Like… like Voldemort, yeah, yeah, we must code it. How about The Thing that Must Not Be Named? I like it. It has a ring to it.”
Relationships: Ben Hargreeves & Klaus Hargreeves, Diego Hargreeves/Klaus Hargreeves, Klaus Hargreeves & Vanya Hargreeves
Comments: 24
Kudos: 162





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I would like to firstly thank this fic’s godmother, @GeometryOfTime because without her, her parenting knowledge and her beta I wouldn’t be here. She also named it so! yay! <33
> 
> Okay so I want to make some things clear before we start. This is my first fic with this dynamic (a/b/o) I’m taking free will with this and playing with it on my own accord. I’m not very familir with this trope, I just needed an excuse to get Klaus knocked up and I used it! Lol. So please, bear with me. 
> 
> This WILL deal with Male Pregnancy, and with Klaus having irresponsible and irrational feelings and fears about it. So if this is not your cup of tea, kindly don’t read. I might add some warnings in some chapters as I see fitting. 
> 
> Lastly! This fic is my baby and I’m putting my heart into it, Comments and Kudos are greatly appreciated<3

He knew God didn’t like him. She had made that very clear in the few occasions they’ve met. But this? Holy shit!

A deep, tired sigh escaped his lips as he stared at himself in the mirror again. There was a mantra running through his head that went, _‘Please, let it be a nightmare, please, let it be a nightmare, please, let it be a nightmare...’_ over and over again. He’d been like this for the past hour or so and he still couldn’t comprehend what he was truly searching for in his pale and exhausted reflection.

 _Oh, you know exactly what you’re looking at_. A voice in his head, that sounded oddly like Ben’s, taunted him.

His stomach was still flat, but if you were to squint a little, you could see the roundness starting from his hips that was slowly accentuating his belly. He shut his eyes and shook his head, trying to drive the image away as a wave of weighting emotions made their way to press on his chest. This couldn’t be happening to him.

“Klaus…” Ben voiced his name softly.

He’d been sitting across the room, watching him the whole time with a concerned expression as Klaus went through his acceptance rollercoaster. After all, it was Ben who pointed out the possibility to him; had been insisting for the past week or so. Ever since Klaus started vomiting his guts out. Additionally pointing out how much he had been sleeping lately. Annnnd if you took into consideration the additional weight he was putting on, too... Klaus was, and still is, distressed over this thought. No, over this fact. It’s true, he knew that. He could finally feel it.

Scent it.

Though, he couldn’t be more than a few weeks along.

He shuddered as he tried to breathe properly, but the anxiety that kept growing in his chest and spreading through his body in a paralysing fear was making it difficult to achieve. Never, ever, in his life had he been this terrified. Not even when dear old Dad used to lock him up in the mausoleum since the age of four. Hell, not even the ghosts ever made him feel this helpless and alone.

What was he supposed to do now?

He was stuck in the 60s. Alone in a world that was so different and beyond his understanding. He missed everyone, his family, his pack. But the one he truly missed the most, was his mate.

Klaus and Diego were never the model bond. In fact, there used to be a time where Klaus thought that was the worst thing that could’ve ever happened to them. There was a period in their lives where he and Diego had been really close, like best friends. With Ben, too. It was always the two or the three of them. But then, the bond happened and everything changed.

It had been an accident, really, an act of pure instinct on their part. He was suffering the blossoming of natural biology taking over him and his senses, and Diego had been far too close; being the stubborn person and alpha that he was, didn’t keep his distance like he had been made to agree on. It had been beautiful though, at the moment, the sex, the bond, the feeling of them becoming one. It felt right, but it changed them forever. They were, truly, a disaster. Dysfunctional and toxic to each other at times. And look at it now, after so many years of ups and downs, wars and end of times, their biology finally got the best of them. It fulfilled its purpose, and Klaus? Klaus was so, very, screwed.

And he was so fucking scared. Terrified. He wished Diego was here. Because it didn’t matter how they sometimes brought the worst out in each other, no one in this universe—or in any other—would ever make him feel as safe and calm as when he had those strong arms wrapped around him. And right now, Klaus wished and longed for nothing more than for Diego to appear out of thin air in a vortex of blue light and swallow him whole into his warm embrace.

Oh God, how he wished to hear that soft and raspy voice of his telling him that everything was going to be okay. Because Klaus was not so sure it was. Or ever would be, for that matter. Not on his own, at least.

“I really don’t wanna say it, but…”

“Yeah, yeah. You told me so. I wish you hadn’t, though.” Klaus groaned.

He could see Ben rolling his eyes through the mirror’s reflection.

“What are you gonna do?’’

Klaus snorted at the audacity of his ghost brother’s question.

“What am I gonna do? What am I gonna do?! What is there to do Ben? Hm? We are trapped in 1962, where people are racist and homophobic and unaware of our biology and physiology, because this is some freaky parallel version of our world. I have no idea if the rest of our siblings landed here or if they’re alive or getting melted in the fucking sun! What am I gonna do, Benjamin? I am a pregnant gay man! I will forcibly try to bring this… this thing into the world because it is the only option I have!” He was panting and his face was red, with fresh hot tears streaming down it by the time he was done yelling at his brother.

God, he was way too sober for this bullshit!

He had to close his eyes and take a deep breath to try to calm down. No, he did not know what the hell he was going to do with this. He didn’t know much about the subject, either. Their father never allowed Klaus to learn much about his Omega. As soon as Klaus had presented, he was put on meds. He was given birth control medication on his first night in heat, the suppressants came soon after. He went through his first heat and that was the only one he had been allowed to go through; only because it couldn’t be avoided by anything. And just that single one had been enough to fuck everything up.

Klaus licked his lips as the memory flashed through his mind. His shaky hand unconsciously went up to his neck. To his mating bite. He whimpered at the feeling of emptiness that washed over his being as he stroked it. He only felt a hollow echo there. Diego was gone. Either dead or he simply wasn't in this timeline. This only made Klaus feel even more distressed, it was a confirmation that he was, indeed, about to go through this alone.

He took his face onto his hands and started to weep.

“I am so, so screwed. Where the fuck is Diego?” He sobbed into his hands. “Where are the others? Why am I here, again, all fucking alone?”

He felt Ben’s hand touch his shoulder. He turned around and looked up at his brother, his lip quivered. The look on Klaus’ face could break even the coldest heart in that instance.

“Oh God, and you! You are dead! I am so sorry, Ben. Fuck, I’m such a screw up! It’s all m-my fault!” He wrapped his arms around himself and wept even harder.

He could notice Ben grow even more worried now, but then his brother chuckled. Because he didn’t notice himself saying this until, well, he did. “And I want to dip a fucking pickle in a peanut butter jar so bad, I have truly reached a new kind of low.”

“God, Klaus. You are drowning in hormones right now. If that doesn’t scream pregnant-” Ben was shushed quiet by Klaus’ “Good-Bye’’ tattooed hand before he could say more.

“Hush, don’t say it! It’s a bad omen. From now on, we are not gonna mention it.” He sniffed. “Like… like Voldemort, yeah, yeah, we must code it. How about The Thing that Must Not Be Named? I like it. It has a ring to it.”

Ben’s muffled voice sounded very disapproving, so Klaus decided that he was going to ignore it. Ben got away from his hold in that exact moment.

“Klaus! You can’t just ignore it! It’s a baby, you are pregnant!’’

“Ben-uhhhh!” Klaus whined.

“You have a baby growing inside of you, you dipshit! This is not something you can play out smoothly.’’  
“Watch me.” The omega mumbled under his breath. Ben gave him an irritated look.

God, how he hated this ghost bitch sometimes. Klaus stayed there, zoning out. Pouting and staring at the floor with his big, and still wet with tears, green eyes. Ben sighed and sat in front of him. Putting his hands on Klaus’. And secretly, Klaus had never been so grateful of this new ability that sobriety has given him. Being able to touch Ben. He felt less lonely with these gestures. Not that he’d ever admit it out loud.

“Look, I know you’re scared, but what I’m trying to say is, the faster you accept this, the easier it will be. For the three of us.” His brother’s voice sounded tired, like that of a parent’s whose toddler’s been throwing an hour-long tantrum over eating their veggies. Klaus bit his lip.

The three of us. He really had a baby inside of him. He swallowed, thickly. He blinked a couple of times as new tears pooled in his eyes. He nodded, once. Ben looked hopeful.

“I-... I’m so tired, right now.’’ Klaus exhaled, getting up and making his way to his bed. “We shall retake this conversation in the morn.’’ He said, throwing himself face first into the mattress.

Last thing he heard before falling into the deepest sleep of his life, was Ben letting out a long, frustrated sigh followed by ‘’This is going to be a looong journey.’’ and then the whoosh of him disappearing out of the room. Good.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you sm for the kudos and comments so far! It makes me really happy that you are already enjoying the story!
> 
> Thanks to my beta bestie GeometryOfTime for always putting up with all my bs and breakdowns over this story<333

**Texas, October 1962**

She landed like a cat would. Gracefully, on her two feet, but as confused as a sheep. Vanya took into her surroundings as panic started to surge through her.

What had just happened? What did she do? _Where_ was she?

Her mind was running at full speed, she could feel the wheels turning in there as many questions started popping up, the more she tried to think, the harder it was to focus on a single, coherent, thought. Her chest felt tight, as if she had just taken a bullet to the heart— it felt like she had the weight of the world pressing down on her entire being.

And the raw truth was, that she did. Though, this wasn’t clear in her head for some reason, everything was foggy.

She looked down at her trembling hands, noticing her clothing. The more she stared, the more she shook. She had a really bad feeling, like she had done something awful that she couldn’t take back. Vanya looked around once more trying to figure out how she got here, to this alley. With wobbly legs, she started walking out of there. She tried to swallow but her throat was dry, which made it uncomfortable. The air felt so different there too. It was as if she had lost her sense of scent. Of smell. It was all materialistic odors, but nothing coming from the people walking around. She didn’t understand, was she sick?

The place also felt and looked really strange. She couldn’t remember ever being around those streets before. In fact, she couldn’t remember a lot of things.

But then... A rough image of blood splashing on her face as she slashed someone’s throat with her violin’s bow, had then suddenly flashed across her mind, followed by a sharp pang of pain in the middle of her chest. She gasped for air, placing her hands on her chest and upper abdomen as a spur of emotions came crashing on her.

Oh, no.

No, no, no, no, “NO!” She shrieked, falling on her knees on the pavement. _Allison_. Tears started to stream down her cheeks as she grabbed her head in her hands. “W-What have I done.” She was horrified.

She had a sister.

And she almost killed said sister.

But that felt like a lifetime ago, for some reason. Any of this made sense!

Had she just dropped out of thin air, then? Was that part of her power?

Power.

_Powers._

_‘I have adopted six children, gifted with abilities far beyond the ordinary...’_

_‘I’m afraid there’s nothing special about you, Number Seven.’_

_‘I did it, with my powers..’_

Oh… holy shit. She had powers. Actual, super freaky, powers. She felt so confused and broken in that moment, she was almost hyperventilating at this point.

_‘You’re special. Say it, ‘I’m special’’_

_‘I’m special.’_

Oh God, she was not special, she was a monster.

In the course of her mental and emotional breakdown, she felt a hand being placed on her shoulder. She flinched and crawled back, away from the person like a scared little lamb. Scared she would lash out.

“Are you alright, dear?” An old lady, she looked to be around her eighties, asked. She was looking at her with warm concern.

Vanya tried to formulate words but she couldn’t get any out of her mouth.

“You look hurt, deary. Are you lost?” No answer. “And it’s getting chilly out here! Don’t you know there’s a storm coming?”

When Vanya didn’t answer, but continued to stare all deer like, the old lady placed a hand over her chest and got closer to her, cooing lightly.

“Here, let me help you out. You are in need of a cosy blanket and a hot drink.” Vanya, hesitantly, took the wrinkly hand that was extended to her and got up, shakily. “I just came from the market, I’ll make some soup.’’

And just like that, this total stranger took a completely scared out of her mind, Vanya, under her fluffy wing.

* * *

To the surprise of no one, Klaus had not talked about it the next morning like he said he would. In fact, he didn’t talk about it for the next two months. No matter how much Ben insisted that he needed to come up with plans. To take better care of himself. To take this matter seriously. To prepare himself for the _thing_.

Useless talk, really. Instead, Klaus had become the _leader_ of a cult. Destiny’s Children had he named them. It was all thanks to the rich old bat that took him under her wing when she found Klaus being kicked like a stray puppy out of a diner. She had very important connections with people, it seemed, and he had become her personal freakshow pet. She unfortunately passed away, (heart attack), a few weeks after Klaus found out about his… condition. After that, he had helped her spirit to move on, though. She had left him part of her fortune, and oh, boy, was the lady loaded? Klaus was having the time of his fucking life! He wanted to get drunk and high so badly, make good use of all that money the best way he knew how. But he couldn’t. He wasn’t heartless or _that_ stupid.

En fin, he travelled all over the U.S. with his worshipers, gaining more and more followers each time. Every week was a new city they would visit. They thought him to be some kind of prophet. A messiah. Someone divine. And he was good at this, he could predict part of the future, after all. He came from it.

However, all this became irritatingly tiring as time passed and his stomach was, (to his utter dismay) finally starting to stretch a little. A headache that had name and personality kept nagging at Klaus about how the fuck he was gonna hide his big _bundle of joy_ from his fanatics. They knew these people were different. They were…abnormal. Their biology wasn’t the same. That was mindfuck, but really scary at the same time. Klaus couldn’t smell them. They had no scent!

Well, they did smell really bad, when days would pass and showers weren't as popular in their regular schedule. But they did not carry with them their unique scent that would distinguish them from their rank in society.

These little details brought other unsolicited memories to his mind. Like Dave, for starters.

Dave belonged here. See, when Klaus had landed back in the war, and met Dave, he had noticed that something was so different about the people there, especially that one particularly beautiful guy. Dave wasn’t an Alpha, or Beta, nor he was an Omega. Klaus had been so infatuated by this that he couldn’t help but sniff him the first time he got close to him. It was all out of curiosity, and yes, he looked like a creep. But Dave didn’t have a scent! Just, normal manly odor.

Not like Diego. Diego smelled like cashmere and woods and chilly rainy days in autumn. Like… safe and warmth.

He tried not to think about his mate often. He really did. But there were nights that he couldn’t help but wonder and... long. Not everything was peaches and cream all the time. He still had morning sickness every day and slept mostly through every trip he made with his cult. He would fall asleep in random places, and God, did he pee a lot, too! It was so annoying.

Klaus couldn’t comprehend his feelings lately. The way he missed Diego like never before in his life was, at times, extremely ridiculous. But he knew it wasn’t just his doing. It had to be that half of him that was growing inside of Klaus that intensified his feelings towards the Alpha. It was the only coherent explanation Klaus had.

The cult was a distraction, something he had truly seen potential in and took advantage of. But Klaus knew that everything was an illusion, meant to flicker away when the time finally came.

And it was dreadful, and scary. How each day was one day closer to his unknown future. He liked to play dumb and uncaring, but deep down Klaus was truly so worried and overwhelmed. He tried to mask it, but he knew Ben could see right through it most of the time. And it hurt, to disappoint him so. He was all Klaus had.

And he was dead.

Therefore, Klaus was still, truly alone in this.

*

“Can you please, for the love of God, take anything seriously for once,” Ben whined, holding his face in his hands.

Klaus gave him a pointed look. “She and I don’t get along, why would I?” He huffed and continued to look around the store, throwing the can of potato chips that he had just grabbed, on the cart full of junk food he was strolling around the market. “Did you see the packaging of the chips? It’s a can! So vintage.”

“Yeah, Pringles exist too, you know. Don’t try to change the subject, Klaus. You can’t keep eating so much garbage like before. That is not healthy for the baby.” Ben tried to reason him once again. And failed, again.

“Nonsense! Thingy loves it.”

Ben groaned, and the hand he slapped against the cart actually made it move a little. “Klaus! Please, this is getting ridiculous!”

“Well, if I craved broccoli and kale I would be eating broccoli and kale, but instead all I can think about is eating that can of chips dipped in fucking chocolate, Ben! Get off my ass, geez.” He raised his “ **Good-Bye** ” tattooed hand at his brother’s face and waved it dismissively. “Talk to me when you carry a worm that makes your stomach feel like a black hole, ghost boy.”

In a sense, he knew Ben actually had a stomach like a black hole that had many monsters in it, not just a worm. But, whatever. At least it wasn’t a tiny version of him that when brought to this world, he had no clue how to take care of.

Yep, his blackhole was definitely scarier than Ben’s.

They were silent for a small while. Klaus looked around the store, taking in the differences of the place and silently comparing it to others he already had visited in his travels. They were currently in Nevada. Las Vegas in the 60s was a different hit. Everything looked so classy, the people and the streets looked extra rich. Klaus felt like he belonged in those streets, literally. He joked to himself.

They were leaving soon, though. That’s why Klaus was buying the essentials for the road trip. All he planned to do was eat all those delicious goodies he bought and sleep through the whole ride. Their next stop was San Francisco. Apparently word had spread like wildfire and Klaus was being anticipated in the city very eagerly. And that was so mindfuck.

He finished his grocery shopping and walked down the sidewalk, there were many stores around. He had been trying different styles on himself recently. His hair was growing rapidly. It was almost shoulder length now. _“Your hair looks gorgeous, you are always glowing, prophet!”_ one of Destiny's Children had said last week. The phrase _‘You’re glowing’_ made him flinch and feel extra nauseous that morning, and he didn’t eat anything for the rest of the day.

Glowing.

_Because you’re pregnant, Klaus. And pregnant people glow, like unicorns._

He couldn’t bring himself to recognise if the uneasiness he felt over that reminder was because of the condition itself or his mind still in denial.

Klaus tried to distract his mind, so he made another quick stop at a store that caught his eye. It had colourful outfits and hats on the entrance, and he saw a cute looking coat through the window that he had to definitely check out. He was exploiting his fashion sense now that he had an excuse to explore a more hippie-classy trend in this era.

He ended up buying it because, of course he did. But just as he was paying for it, another thing caught his eye. And he didn’t mean for it to happen, really. He just looked at it for a second when he let his eyes wander around while the girl at the register packed the coat in a nice box. His heart lurched against his chest as he approached the object before he could stop himself. He pulled his sunglasses up and took a proper look at it. It was a soft, thin, tiny little hat. It was in many different colours, pink, yellow, blue... But it was the one with a beautiful shade of evergreen that caught his eye. It reminded him of an aloe vera plant he used to have on his nightstand back in his room at the academy. He loved taking care of it, mom had taught him to look after it, and it had become the closest thing to a pet he was allowed to have.

Klaus didn’t know how long he stared at it, but it must have been more than a minute. “It comes with a matching blanket.” Said the petite young lady that worked at the store. Klaus was startled by her presence since he didn’t feel her get close, and because he suddenly felt caught.

He felt his cheeks get warm and he drifted his eyes back to the tiny hat he still held on his fingers. “Oh, uh… can y-you-“ Why was he so nervous all of a sudden? He cleared his throat. “Can you show me the blanket?” He asked softly.

“Sure thing!” The girl turned away and went behind the counter to fetch it, it only took her a few seconds to do so, but Klaus wished it had been more. “Here it is! It’s a set. Are you and your wife expecting a little one?”

Now, that’s just plain nosy. How dare she assume Klaus would marry so young.

 _But, you’re technically married already…_ A little voice in his head-that he hated very much-, said. Nope. We were not going there right now.

“You could say that…” Klaus flashed her his pearly white teeth in a grin. The young woman actually squealed at that, as if it was the best news she’d heard all week. Klaus blinked at her dumbfounded because, what the hell? What was so exciting about that.

Sheila, (as said on her nametag), finally handed the matching blanket to Klaus. He took a moment to observe the piece of cloth. The material was thin but actually softer than it looked. It surely would make the baby feel cozy. Especially since she was going to be born around the beginning of spring, it still was going to be chilly around that time. Klaus frowned as he caught up on his train of thoughts.

Then this realisation hit him like a train. His heart started racing again, because it was the first time he had referred to the thing as baby, and, to his genuine surprise, as a she. It felt… strange, thse thoughts. Very new. But he still couldn’t say he was the slightest comfortable with all this. Way too soon.

He rolled his shoulders and cracked his neck. He turned around and handed over the hat and the blanket to Sheila and gave her a small, charming smile. “I’m sure my wife will love this one. Please, pack it up for me as well.”

_(In a corner of the same store, a certain ghost boy was watching that little exchange with a rather proud expression. Feeling at least an ounce of relief for the first time in weeks.)_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks for reading! i’m really excited to keep sharing this story with you all! 🥺
> 
> Kudos and Comments are always greatly appreciated <333.


	3. Chapter 3

A month had passed ever since her arrival, and Vanya was adjusting. She remembered more about herself now, at least. And needless to say… it was tough. She knew she grew up in some sort of Academy-like-household, with other children. She remembered flashes of her childhood that made her feel extremely lonely, for some reason. But it was at night where things would get… darker, in her mind. She would sometimes have nightmares about blood soaked streets. Countless of dead bodies, people screaming and rushing in fear. And it was all because of her. 

She didn’t know how to feel about that, it was truly overwhelming and terrifying. And it made her question whether she was human or a walking bedtime story monster. 

There was something about her biology as well. Vanya understood she was different, she knew she didn’t belong with the people here or in this era for that matter. She remembered that where she belonged from, society worked differently. And that she not only did grow up as the black sheep in what she believed was her family, but in society people like her were inferior. 

So, yeah. Vanya was adjusting to this new lifestyle pretty nicely. It wasn’t as harsh on her, though she understood that this society was prejudiced in a different way.They were extremely narrow-minded where people of colour, same-sex couples and women were concerned. Now, don’t get her wrong, where she came from these things still existed too, but it wasn’t as bad as how it was back here. She could remember as much. 

Other things she remembered was some of the names of the kids she grew up with. She knew for sure she had a sister, Allison. Her blood splashing on her skin made an appearance in her nightmares almost every night. She also remembered someone named after a number. Five. And the name Ben. But that was about it. She couldn’t remember what they looked like, though when she would think about Five she felt a feeling of longing. And when she would think about Ben she would feel waves of sadness wash over her chest. It was very confusing, but it was all she had. For now. 

Mrs. Reynolds was an angel sent from heaven to Vanya. She had taken her under her fluffy wing and given her a place to stay without asking too many questions. She was an elderly woman, had a son who lived in New York, too far from here. A husband that had sadly long gone since passed, so she lived with her sister, who was a couple of years younger than her. The other eldery women owned a bakery shop that was always quite busy in the area, and they were in need of a pair of young hands in their staff. Vanya had been delighted to have something to do, as a way to repay the women for their kindness. So that’s what she had been doing for the past two weeks. Working at the bakery. She somehow had good skill in the dessert department, she soon discovered when she was being trained on how to make some of the baked goods for the days Daisy, the baker of the shop, had off. 

She genuinely liked it there. She found it therapeutic, and the time she would spend at the bakery, she wasn’t thinking about the horrid things she may had caused in her real world. 

Today was a slow day, it was a chilly Tuesday morning of December in Texas. Vanya was getting the bread out the oven when she heard the dingly bell move as the front door opened. Vanya turned around, seeing a tall, blonde woman in a flowery dress, and a little boy that Vanya was going to assume was maybe her son, approaching the counter. She dusted her hands off when she put the bread on the heat glass cabinet and then went to greet them. 

“Hello, how can I help you today?” She asked with a small, polite smile on her lips. Trying not to be awkward in her place of work was never her fort, but she always tried her best.

The woman, who was shushing the kid softly, trying to make him stay calm by her side, finally gave her attention to Vanya. Gifting her with a smile so bright that made Vanya feel a little… breathless. 

“Hi!” The blonde one said, her smile dropping a little for a look of curiosity now. “Oh, are you new? I’ve never seen you around here before…” 

Vanya shifted awkwardly and nodded. She had gotten this reaction a couple of times this week. She was starting to understand that the people in this small town knew each other well. 

“Yes. I’m Vanya, I am new in town, Mrs. Reynolds was kind enough to offer me the job and I’m, well, very grateful.” 

“Oh! That’s great. Nice to meet you, Vanya. I’m Sissy and this is my son, Harlan.” She looked at the boy and tugged gently at his hand. “Harlan, darling, could you say hi to the nice lady?” The kid just gave her one look and then looked away. Sissy sighed but her smile returned when she looked at Vanya again. “ I have been coming here since forever, it is not hard to miss a new face.” Her voice was light and youthful, it made Vanya smile once more.

The kid began stomping his feet in that moment and it caught both women's attention. He was clearly distressed about something, Vanya could smell this even though their scent was different, she could still sense these things on them. She tilted her head and eyed them, as the woman became frustrated not understanding what her son actually wanted from her or to simply say. Vanya leaned on the counter so the child could see her now. 

“Hey, buddy.” She tried to call his attention. 

The kid looked in her direction, but it didn’t last. He avoided her eye contact and darted his gaze back to the glass cabinet and continued to stomp his feet. 

“Harlan, honey, please calm down. I promise I will buy you a sweet, yeah? Would you like one?” Tried Sissy, but the boy, Harlan, continued his fit. 

Vanya followed the boys gaze to the direct point he was focused on, it was a snowy frosting cake. She had baked those very early in the morning, they were some of her personal favourites. She opened the glass on her end and picked one of the perfectly cut square pieces of cake, grabbed a little box, put a clean napkin in it and placed the cake inside. She now got out of the staff counter and crouched down in front of the boy. 

“Hello, Harlan. That is your name, right?” She tried. The boy stopped his stomping but his vision was still unfocused and he remained avoidant. Vanya proceeded nonetheless. “Look what I got you here, little man. Is this the cake you wanted?” She presented the piece of cake in the box on his point of vision.

It may have taken a minute, but the child had blinked a couple of times and then he nodded. Only once and forcefully. Vanya smiled, warm and pleased. She handed the box to him carefully and only then he let his mother’s hand go, grabbing the box that Vanya had offered him with care and tucking it to his chest. 

Sissy was looking at them both with awe, her eyes shifting from Vanya to her little boy. 

“Wow, how did you do that? I can never calm him down this fast!” 

Vanya shrugged. She didn’t know. But she understood a lot about children. When she had left the Academy she had tried college. She was trying to earn a degree in Developmental Psychology. But she dropped out after two years. She sometimes regrets it, but the violin was her life and… wait! How come she remembered all of that? Vanya blinked a couple of times, surprise washing over her. She shook her head and looked at Sissy.

“Instincts.” She smiled, plainly.

———

The first time it happened, Klaus being Klaus, ignored it. He let it slide because he had been feeling all sorts of weird ever since he learned about… the condition. They were heading back to Texas now, thank fuck. It’s been a month since San Francisco, after that they had gone to Los Angeles for a bit. Klaus loved it! It was so different from what he remembered it was. He had only been there once, to Allison and Patrick’s wedding back in their time. He had gotten sober for the occasion too, so he had a nice memory of the place.

Ben loved it there too. Klaus had decided to be a little less mean to his ghostly brother and had offered to go to the cinema, a fancy looking one in Hollywood st. Ben was over the moon to be in this part of LA, the nerd. Klaus had bought popcorn and m&m’s, he knew his brother liked those, but he couldn’t bring himself into feeling too much guilt about eating all this goodness in front of him, because he was having a fucking blast. Klaus was one to always love food, whatever it was. That’s what happens when you would live off garbage sometimes as a consequence from living on the streets. But raccoons did it all the time, so Klaus wasn’t ashamed, not really. 

So here Klaus was, laying on his back at the top of the Volkswagen that one of the members of his cult owned. He was looking at the stars and just… thinking.There was a lot to think about, and he did it a lot, if he was, finally, being honest. Think. Overthink.

A lot was happening, so much was changing. His hand went to his belly. It was getting rounder each week that passed. Gosh, he soon was gonna be the size of a house, wasn’t he? It wasn’t gonna stop growing, his… baby. He sighed. 

Klaus wasn’t a heartless, emotionless, mindless man. It was all the opposite. He felt too much, too deeply. And about the thing he, well, he cared, okay? A lot. There, that was that. He didn’t think he felt something big like love, yet, but he did care. It was inside of him, for goodness sake! They shared everything! It was like Ben, he was always there with him too, yeah, a mini version of Ben. Except this version was making him fat and giving him an insane amount of heartburn. 

Wait, thinking of it tht way made Ben sound like his baby daddy, which, ew. Klaus shuddered. He loved Ben (don’t tell him that, It’ll go to his ghostly bitchy head), but not in that way. Ben was a huge part of Klaus, always had been ever since they were little. But he wasn’t Diego, he wasn’t his mate. 

Klaus sighed as he absently stroked a hand over the slight curve of his belly. He knew he was being so reckless and ignorant with this. But he couldn’t help it. He didn’t know how to deal with this. What was he supposed to do? Jump in one leg with excitement because he was gonna be a… a parent? Hell, Klaus didn’t even have one to begin with! Because Diego had been right. Their father was a monster. The only parenting figure he had was that sadistic bastard. Sure there was mom, but she was a robot at the end of the day. There was no warmth, no motherly scent to put them at ease. She did what she could to appear as humanly affectionate as possible to them, and Klaus loved her very much. But there was a gap that she could never fulfill.

So truly, what type of parent awaited this little cub? He didn’t want to find out the hard way. He did not want to wake up one day and see how miserable this baby was being because of his own incompetence as a human being and as a father. 

So no, Klaus couldn’t bring himself to be excited or to look forward to bringing this child to the world, because he was sure he was gonna mess them up. 

Diego would know better, he was closest to mom, he used to tell him that she could feel things, that he felt it in her. That her love was real and not a programmation of their father or Pogo. Klaus believed him, he truly did. Because he liked the thought of Diego feeling loved and understood. At least one of them got something. 

Klaus was immersed in his hopeless thoughts when he felt it. Something inside his belly happened. At first he had thought it was gas, and he farted so he guessed that was it. But now it felt strong… like bubbles inside fluttering. Maybe it was constipation? He hadn’t gone since yesterday morning.

He pressed the palm of his hand right below his belly-button and held his breath, waiting. It was a soft little thing, really, but when he felt it again, he could feel a faint pressure where his hand was located and it all came crashing to him like a pile of bricks being dumped on his chest. 

Oh…

That was… oh, that was his baby. 

His belly fluttered again, as if… as if the small creature inside him could sense that he had not only acknowledged their existence, but felt it too. Klaus had not realised he had been crying until a wave of chilly wind cooled his face, where tears kept sliding down the sides of his face. He sniffed, wiping his snotty nose with the sleeve of his coat. Gosh, he was a mess. He then took a deep breath and exhaled, shakily. 

“Hey, there.’’ He whispered. “I guess you really are in there, huh. I’m sorry for being such a fucking asshole-” He gasped, covering his mouth with his hand. “I’m sorry, please cover your ears… if you have any yet. Do you have ears? Goddamn it, I’m such a bad parent already and you are not even a fully developed person yet.” He closed his eyes hard, biting down his hand in frustration. “Am I supposed to know these things?... I think I am.”

He was really talking to his undeveloped fetus. Klaus started to wonder, though, he was starting to finally have a lot of questions about it. 

‘Not an it, Klaus. A them, it’s a baby, not a plushie.’ He could hear Ben’s annoying voice in his head. 

How far along was he truly? Well, he could remember when it was conceived. It had been right after he had returned from the war. God, he had been so, so heartbroken after losing Dave. He remembers returning to the Academy to find everyone too busy, losing their minds over stopping an impending apocalypse. They were discussing it in a meeting, they were also discussing his whereabouts. He could feel Diego’s distress and anxiety from the moment he walked through the front door. He assumed for a moment that it was because of the death of his ex-girlfriend. Oh lord, that had been his fault too. But then Diego was there, in front of him in a heartbeat, Klaus had barely made it inside when those strong arms were wrapped around his lean frame. 

Gut wrenching sobs left Klaus’ throat then, he hadn’t realised how much he needed his mate’s touch until he actually got it. Diego hadn’t let anybody come near him after that. He just growled at Allison when she tried to get close and ask Klaus where he had been and if he was okay. She backed off immediately, raising her hands in a peace offering. Diego then had guided Klaus to the bathroom, where he proceeded to take care of him. He gave him a bath while Klaus shook and cried. No questions needed to be asked at that moment, Diego knew and could feel Klaus’ pain right then and all his nature told him was that his mate needed him, needed to feel safe. 

They cuddled in bed for a couple of hours, and that was when the both of them felt it. Klaus’ heat was crippling on him. See, Klaus may have been a junkie and far from a functional human being, but he was on heat suppressants ever since his first heat had come and he stayed that way. He could be anything, but he always remembered to go back to the Academy for his pills and injection. He would then spend a couple of days there, sober, enjoying mom’s food and avoiding Luther and Reginald the best he could, and then after a while he would kick off to the streets again. 

So, yes, he stayed that way until he mistakenly time travelled to the 60s, in the middle of a Vietnam war, and fell half in love with a mortal. Mortals, hah, that’s what Klaus had been calling this kind recently, the abnormal mortals without scents, mates and extraordinary biologies and physiologies. Such simpler lives they lived. 

In the end, Klaus heat had been triggered by Diego as soon as he was near him. All in him craved Diego’s touch and for Diego to consume him. He wanted to drown in his mate and never feel this misery again. Plus, the world was ending, and they were both grieving the loss of lost loves. It seemed correct. And it was, don’t get him wrong. He had never come that many times. They fucked all night, until they couldn’t breathe or move. Until all they felt and thought of was one another under their very skin. That has been the night they conceived their baby. 

Two days before doomsday. 

That made it March 29th? But then again, Klaus had landed in July, 1962 in an alternate universe to theirs, so what was time anyways.

“I have no idea how big you are, or when you’re supposed to arrive, little bug.” He said in a whisper. He rubbed his belly once more.

It was still a small bump, though he figured out his condition around two and half months ago… and he had been there for a few weeks. He was probably around, maybe, 17 weeks or so. And his dumbfuck ass had no idea what that meant because he never bothered to learn on his own. Yes, dad hadn’t let him learn much on that ‘not academically necessary for missions nonsense’, but it was his body, for fuck’s sake. He could have taken some time after he left the Academy to at least learn more than the basics. But, oh well, he was a busy bee.

He rolled on his side and sighed once more. In the horizon, a shooting star passed by, and with pursed lips and a heavy heart, Klaus wished. 

This time not for himself, but for the sake and healthy of his baby.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hiii, sorry for the delay on this chapter, it’s been a month whew! but i just got surgery and been recovering. anyways, thank you so much for your kudos and comments, they make me really happy!
> 
> so what do you think about Vanny? and Klaus’ internal struggles? 🥺 poor bebe.


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